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Does Botox Have Long Term Results?

Summary: Does Botox have long term results for patients who get injections repeatedly? For most patients, Botox results will diminish after three months or so. But the more often you get Botox injections, the more likely it is that you’ll develop more long-term results. It’s possible that results will improve and their duration will increase. But it’s also not guaranteed. Whether your Botox has long term results will likely depend on how many injections you get and your own personal physiology.

Does Botox Have Long Term Results?

Botox is famous as an injectable in part because the primary results tend to be temporary. Whether you love or hate your results (or find them difficult to see), you will only have to worry about it for three months or so. But does Botox have long terms results to speak of? That is, can it create long term consequences, either good or bad?

The best person to have any kind of conversation about side effects–short term or long term–is your cosmetic surgeon. In part, that’s because different formulations of Botox (for example, whether you’re talking about name brand Botox, or something like Dysport instead) will often be accompanied by slightly different side effects (potentially).

And that’s the other thing: complications from Botox injections tend to be quite rare–or at least uncommon. So it’s difficult to predict when they’ll pop up. Your surgeon is going to be in the best position possible to discuss how uncommon those side effects could be and what they might actually do.

But what about those long term results? Can Botox last longer than the three months it says on the label? And would that be a good thing or a bad thing? So, what we mean when we ask, does Botox have a long term result is, essentially: does Botox leave a mark?

Weak Muscles

For the most part, if you get a single series of Botox injections, you’ll never notice anything after your results fade. You’ll get your three months and then nothing else will happen. It’s only when patients undergo repeated injections over time that we start to see the potential for any noticeable long term results.

The most obvious of those results might be weakened muscles. And the kicker is that you might not notice those weak muscles anyway. Here’s what happens:

When Botox is injected, it works by paralzying the target muscle. This works on a very, very small scale and surgeons have gotten very good at injecting only enough to get the job done.

After a couple of weeks, you will begin to see the wrinkle connected to that muscle will diminish.

If you have undergone repeated injections, you’ll notice that the targeted wrinkle stays diminished longer; that’s because the muscle that created that wrinkle in the first place has grown weaker.

The basic takeaway here is that your Botox results will last longer the weaker that muscle gets. You generally won’t have to worry about losing facial expressions or anything like that, because modern Botox treatments are careful to avoid that kind of outcome.

Are Weak Muscles a Good Thing?

When your muscles become weakened over time, it’s important to consult with your surgeon to see whether this is a desired outcome. If you’re getting Botox to mitigate wrinkles, those weak muscles might mean more bang for your buck. But if you’re getting Botox to combat migraines, it might be worth thinking about a little more deeply.

Your Results May Improve

There are some studies to suggest that your Botox results might actually improve over time. If you square that with what we just discussed–the muscles weakening–that actually makes a lot of sense. But the takeaway is there’s some evidence to suggest that getting Botox once or twice might not make for the ideal results.

Now, I’m not suggesting you get Botox repeatedly if you already got Botox and you very much disliked the results. After all, Botox is expensive, and it can be difficult to justify those costs if you don’t see the transformation you’d like. But if your results just barely didn’t get there, it’s nice to know that a greater (if only slightly) transformation awaits.

Other Long Term Results from Botox

These aren’t the only long term results from Botox. Some patients might experience:

Changes in the way the skin looks under certain light

The development of thin skin in some areas, especially when treatment is begun at a younger age

Botox injections over time may increase the visibility of your veins and blood vessels in the targeted area

It’s difficult to know when or even if any of these long term results will crop up in your own Botox treatment lifespan. That’s why your best course of action is always to speak with your cosmetic surgeon about how you’re looking and how you’re feeling.

The more you communicate with your surgeon, the more likely you are to experience a significantly favorable transformation. After all, if your surgeon doesn’t know your goals, how are they supposed to help you achieve them?

Does Botox have long term results? Well, it can. But whether it will or not depends almost entirely on how much Botox you get and how your body responds to it.